The house seemed empty, the stairway motionless. Down came Mark in a stained T-shirt and jeans. His friend Eddie followed.
"Damn, dude," said Eddie. "You still haven't gotten a job yet?"
Mark didn't reply. He just remained silent as he usually did when people nagged him. He knew he was special and was confident that one day he would make it big. Advice was something he never thought he needed. He walked to his piano and started to play an eerie tune you'd only hear in a horror movie.
"C'mon, man. You just can't sit on your butt all day long. Why don't you go back to school? Registration's today...or why don't you get an early start and try earning a wage?"
Mark continued to play the piano. No words came from him. His fingers pressed over the keys gently, his eyes affixed on his own play.
Eddie now looked down on Mark impatiently. "Alright, fine. Forget it. I give up. I was just trying to get through to you." He opened the front door. "See you later," were the last words as he let himself out.
* * *
A gorgeous young lady came out from the kitchen on just another ordinary day. She was dressed in a long red dress. Her curves could bring any man to his knees, and her lips were soft and glistening with warmth and passion. She too wore long-white gloves, and in her hands were two glasses and a bottle of ancient-old red wine.
Again, only the piano could be heard playing its eerie tune. The blond woman headed in Mark's direction. His back faced the living room where his mother and sister and the rest of the world had once roamed. He was dressed in a black tuxedo with his hair slicked back and as shiny as a beam of sun on water. His tie and cumber bun were red to match the woman's dress.
She placed the two glasses on the edge of the piano and began to fill them with the dark-red wine that almost reminded you of blood from Mark's own veins. She said nothing to him, and he said nothing to her. She began to massage his neck and gave him a kiss on his cheek as he continued his play.
The piano finally stopped. Mark reached for one of the glasses and sipped. It all tasted rather sweet to him. He got up from his chair and opened the front door to his sight of success. Everything around him was desert. Not a building or house stood beside him. Not a tree or animal breathed, everything around him destroyed to a barren ash. The only house left untouched was his. A gust of wind whipped by, and off to the distance a great big black-stormy cloud seemed to suck in the horizon. Mark took a deep breath and sighed, feeling as though he had it all now.

--M. E. Delgado
1988
www.MEDelgado.com

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